I Just Had to Copy and Paste This 2008 Post by Saundra Barragan

When I visited Saundra's page, I discovered that she had passed. Such a beautiful post with interesting ideas. I thought it was worth reposting.

SAUNDRA'S THEORY ON THE CAUSES OF DIABETES

I have been following this topic with great interest. So, since we are each tossing out our thoughts on this I am going to give you my ideas. I believe that diabetes is caused by a virus or viruses. I also believe that there are a specific number of genetic factors that predispose us to any autoimmune disease. And I also believe that the state of our own immune system at any given time either opens the door a little or keeps it closed. I also believe that the normal bacterial flora in our large bowel has a great deal to do with how well we absorb or reject the pathogens that we come across on any given day. And that is why I believe that a very healthy diet and very strong immune system will be good answers for us to help us along the way.
Now that said I also want to say that the big diseases that we have around are all caused by viruses. To note, Polio, Chron's, Hiv, Lou Gehrig's, and some cancers. I believe that in the future we will find that all cancers are caused by specific viruses. I also believe that we will be able to battle these with viruses and our own human cells. This is the big reason I want to get back to school to get into research. I have some ideas about which viruses I want to use to target specific aspects of our own cells to make us stronger so we can fight off the attacks on our various body systems. Unfortunately my target goal is on specific cancers, not diabetes. But i know there are people working very hard on this as well.
I believe that all types of diabetes are caused by a slow insidious attack on the pancreas and also on the liver. I know that a lot of people, doctors included that love to bash type 2's, saying everything is their fault for not taking care of themselves, etc. I do not believe that at all. I believe that for type 2's the liver is attacked first, causing the excess storage of fat. I think that it is damaged enough, but slowly to disable it and make it work in a diffferent way. That is why diabetes comes up later in life for a type 2. I think that the pancreas is attacked first for a type 1. I believe that there are a number of thiings that hurry along the attack on the pancreas and the liver. Things like specific drugs and specific events that speed up or simply destroy the pancreas.
The greatest number of deaths are in type 2's. I believe that type 2's are often not cared for properly or agressively enough to treat their diabetes. Here again for many doctors it is so convenient to blame the patient and not the disease. Thankfully some type 2's are not at a deep stage of destruction in their diabetes when the disease is diagnosed.
I beleive deeply that we will be able to fight this desease. And we are extemely fortunate to have people like Manny who help us get up and proclaim to the world we are diabetic. As we all stand together, we are stronger and hopefully there are enough of us who are well enough to get into research and find the answers we need.
I would like for each of us to reach out to all of our own familes and teach them about a really healthy diet and build up their immune systems too. I know that it will take time for us to fight this disease. I have two prediabetic grandchildren and pray every day for all of our little ones. I want the answers soon.

Thanks for reposting this Peetie!

Memorial Day Weekend is a great time to revisit Saundra's thoughts. Thanks, Joanne.

Sandy! Oh how we all loved her!! Thanks for reposting it peetie! She was such a great woman!

Thanks from me, too. Saundra was a very special lady. Miss her a lot.

Very interesting, thanks for posting this Peetie. Another avenue for research that needs to be done to get at the root cause(s) of diabetes.

It's obvious Saundra was a much beloved and respected member, it's nice she can live on in some small way through her posts.

Can you please let us know who Saundra was. Thanks.

Saundra Barragan
http://www.tudiabetes.org/profile/saundrabarragan
http://www.tudiabetes.org/video/remembering-sandy-barragan

was an early adopter of TuDiabetes. She was quite simply, one amazing, beautiful woman. I call her the heart and soul of TuDiabetes. Originally dx as a type2, she finally got correctly dx as type1.5. She was a RN, knowledgeable on many medical conditions, and curious to learn more. She welcomed every single new member of our community, and was always there to help and support the members in need of a kind word, suggestion, or to celebrate a small success. She understood how hard things are for all of us sometimes, and she always knew the right thing to say. Blame and shame were not her modus operandi. She was there for me when I was afraid, hurting, confused, and ready to throw in the towel. I learned so much from her, not only about diabetes, but the power of love. If you look at her profile you will see she was helping members here right up to the day before she died in 2009. She loved TuDiabetes so much, and truly thought of us as her family. I still miss her, and I'll never forget her.
www.tudiabetes.org/photo/dedication-word-in-your-hand